The Battle of Vác, fought between 15 and 17 July 1849, was one of two important battles which took place in Vác during the Hungarian War of Independence. This battle, fought between the Russian Empire's intervention forces led by Field Marshal Ivan Paskevichand and the Hungarian Army of the Upper Danube led by General Artúr Görgei, was part of the Summer Campaign. After the lost battle of Komárom from 11 July 1849, Görgei tried to lead his army to the planned concentration point of the Hungarian troops around Szeged, but the Russians cut his road at Vác. In the battle, the still convalescent Görgei (who was suffering from a head injury suffered in the battle of Komárom fought on 2 July) managed to capture Vác from the Russians, repulse the Russian attacks, then to retreat towards North-East, as much superior Russian forces arrived. Fearing that Görgei will cut their supply lines, after the battle, the four times bigger Russian army, instead of marching towards Szeged in order to unite with the Austrian main army of Field Marshal Julius Jacob von Haynau, and to crush the much weaker Hungarian forces which were gathering there, followed Görgei's retreating troops, enabling them to arrive to the Hungarian concentration point with several days in front of them, creating the condition to unite with the Southern Hungarian troops, and crush the Austrian army of Haynau before the Russians arrived (it was not Görgei's fault that this opportunity failed, but mainly Henryk Dembiński's who, as the Hungarian commander of the Southern main forces, instead of North, he marched towards South, and met Haynau alone in the Battle of Temesvár). Considering the fact that the actual plan of Görgei was to arrive to the concentration point before the Russians, and, as a result of the battle of Vác from 15 to 17 July, he managed to achieve this, this battle is considered a strategic victory for the Hungarians.
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